Protect
by Akirafanatic
Summary: So, I don't remember my idea for writing this, but basically Burn learns something new about Reize. I rated it T because of the language.
1. Chapter 1

I sighed and hunched my shoulders to try and stay warm. It wasn't actually that cold outside, but it was dark and winter was a few weeks away, so it wasn't exactly warm either. I glared at anyone and everyone, the cold making me irritated. I wasn't particularly paying attention to where I was going, so I wound up bumping into someone.

"Watch where you're walking," I growled, glaring up at the older male. I began to go around him and muttered 'dumbass' under my breath. I guess that wasn't the smartest move, since I soon found myself shoved up against an ally wall, five angry teenagers glaring at me.

They all looked to be second or third years in high school, at least two years older than I was. I knew I wouldn't get anywhere with them when I smelled the alcohol on their breath. _'Great,'_ I thought, _'drunken morons just itching for someone to beat up. This just isn't my night.'_

I struggled and tried to get myself free, clawing at the arm holding me up and kicking wildly. I felt my foot connect and smirked when one of them cursed, but grunted in pain when I was slammed back against the wall. "Let me go you bastards!" I yelled, struggling again. This time I kicked up and hit the arm that was holding me.

The grip loosened as the teen cursed but it still wasn't enough to get me free. I started struggling harder but froze when a knife was pointed at me. "You're gonna pay for that ya little bastard," The teen holding me growled.

"Burn?" My head turned along with the teens' to the newcomer. _'Fuck,'_ I thought, _'what the hell's Reize doing here?'_

"What's it look like?" I asked, struggling again. I stopped when the knife was put inches from my face.

Reize tilted his head to the side and said, "It looks like you're about to get hurt." Had I not had a knife right in front of my face I would have slammed my palm into my forehead.

"Get out of here Reize," I said, my voice hitching a little when the knife came closer. I wanted to add a glare, but I was too focused on the knife. I glanced out of the corner of my eye and frowned when Reize move toward me. "Damn it Reize," I growled, turning to him, "I said get the fuck out of here!"

One of the teens turned toward Reize and smirked. "You heard 'im," he said, "leave." He grinned and punched me so hard my head smacked into the wall and I saw stars for a moment. "Unless you wanna end up like your little friend here." He and the other teens laughed.

My breath hitched and I nearly stopped breathing when the knife was place by my neck. I was so focused on the knife I didn't see what happened next, but I was suddenly released and the teens were cursing and swinging at Reize.

I gasped and rubbed my neck as I looked up. I think my jaw dropped as I watched Reize easily avoid their punches and deliver a few of his own, knocking the teens down or even unconscious. _'What the hell?'_ I thought as I watched. My eyes widened when I saw the teen with the knife remember that he _had_ a knife. I opened my mouth to warn Reize but no sound came out. I watched with an open mouth and wide eyes as the knife came down. Just when I thought Reize was going to get stabbed, he whirled around, caught the wrist of the hand holding the knife, twisted it back so the teens arm bent backwards and up and forced him into dropping the knife before moving the teen to block a punch from one of his friends, successfully having it knock him out.

He dropped the unconscious teen and twisted to the right while grabbing hold of the closest teens shirt. As he turned he bent forward and used his momentum to flip the teen over his shoulder and ram head first into the wall. I watched in shock as all of this happened within seconds.

The remaining teens seemed to realize they were outmatched and grabbed their fallen friends before running, cursing me and Reize as they left. Reize sighed and straightened his clothes before kneeling down in front of me. He gently grabbed my chin in one hand and lifted my face up, winching at what he saw. I came to my senses when he gently touched my left eye and pain coursed through my body.

"Fuck," I cried, batting his hand away and closing my good eye. I bent my head back, only to bring it up with a hiss when it hit the wall behind me. Cursing, I bent forward and held the back of my head with my hands.

I stayed like that until the pain subsided a little. When I looked back up with the only eye that I could open, I found Reize coming back toward me with something in his hands. "Hold still," He said, placing one hand on my chin and having me look up. He took whatever was in his other hand and gently placed it on my throbbing eye. It was cold and helped numb the pain a bit. "Here," He said, moving one of my hands to hold whatever was on my eye. "Now let me see your head."

I grumbled, but let him do as he pleased. I tilted my head down and felt him brush apart my hair so he could see better. I heard him hiss and knew I was bleeding. "This may sting," He said quietly and I heard the rustle of plastic and then silence for a few seconds. The next thing I felt was pain. I let out a string of curse words and tried to move but Reize was pretty strong when he wanted to be hand kept my head still, avoiding touching my eye or the cut on my head.

I gave one last jerk before the pain subsided and I slumped, grumbling under my breath. I closed my good eye with a sigh when I felt something cool against where the pain had been. Reize took his hands away and came back around to my front, holding out a hand to help me up. I glared at him the best I could but took his hand anyway.

He grabbed my arm when my knees buckled and I nearly fell after standing. I leaned against him as the spots began clearing from my vision. When he was sure I was able to stand again, Reize went to pick up his bags and we headed for Sun Garden in silence.

I followed Reize inside and we took off our shoes before heading inside. Hitomiko-san called us into the kitchen where dinner was going on and I sighed, prepared for the worst. I glared as best I could at the others when they stared at me and growled when some started laughing.

"What happened?" Hitomiko-san asked and I looked away.

"He protected me," Reize said easily and I whipped my head around to stare at him is disbelief. _'Why the hell is he lying?'_ I thought. Reize ignored my stare and continued on. "I accidently bumped into some people and spilled their drinks on them. They got mad at me and Burn stopped them from hurting me."

' _He's just making himself sound like a pathetic weakling!'_ I thought as I listened. _'And he's turning me into some hero when I froze up the second they pulled a knife. I couldn't even make a fucking sound when they were about to stab him!'_

Hitomiko-san looked at me and I found myself nodding without thinking. She raised an eyebrow but didn't anything. Instead, she told Reize to join the others at the table while she took a look at my eye. She took off whatever Reize had put on it and set it aside before lifting my head up and turning it left and right.

"It'll be swollen for a while," She said, "But since you put the meat on it right away it shouldn't puff up as much as it would have. I'll give you some pain medication before you go to bed, so go and join the others."

I nodded and went to the table, stabbing a piece of meat on my fork. _'No wonder they were laughing,'_ I thought bitterly, _'I was walking around with a fucking piece of meat on my face.'_

I nearly snorted when I saw Gran checking Reize over for any 'injuries'. I smirked to myself when Reize smacked his hand away, telling him he was fine and to eat.

"So," Gazelle said after dinner. He was leaning against my desk, smirk on his face. The bastard. "I thought you hated Reize. What made you help him?" I mentally snorted, was everyone an idiot or did they all seriously believe Reize's story?

I shrugged and said, "I was pissed off and they were in my way. I didn't give a damn if Reize was there or not." Gazelle snorted but didn't say anything. I couldn't believe it. He seriously believed Reize's bull shit story. I narrowed my good eye and wondered where Reize learned to kick ass like that. I resolved to ask him next time I caught him alone.

It took a week for me to finally find Reize alone. He seemed to ALWAYS be around someone, especially Gran or Desarm. When I finally got him alone he was in his room and the others were either out or watching something downstairs.

"What the hell?" Was the first thing out of my mouth after I shut and locked his door. Reize blinked and turned to me confused. "Why the hell did you make up that story?" I asked, glaring down at him.

"Because you looked like you didn't want anyone to know," He said. "And I didn't want you to get in trouble."

"I don't give a damn what others think," I growled, "And it's not like I've never been in trouble before."

He blinked and said, "Oh." That was it? That was all he had to say?

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Getting mad now wouldn't help things. That wasn't why I was here. When I was sure I wouldn't yell at him I asked, "How the hell did you do all that back there?"

"Do what?" Reize asked with a tilt of his head. I resisted the urge to smack him.

"Kick those guys asses," I clarified.

Realization dawned and he smiled while saying, "I've been practicing martial arts since I was little."

"Don't fuck with me."

"It's true! I attend the dojo up the street! Ask Hitomiko-san!"

"So why the hell didn't you tell anyone?! Everyone thinks you're some fucking pansy who always needs protected!"

Ryuuji looked at me with sad eyes. "I didn't want anyone to take it away from me," He said. Before I could question it, he pulled his knees to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. "None of you ever wanted to play with me, so I would go and find something else to do. When I went shopping with Hitomiko-san we passed by the dojo and I asked her to let me go in. I thought it looked scary at first, but the people were really nice to me.

"Hitomiko-san let me stay while she finished shopping and they started teaching me some simple things. I had fun and asked Hitomiko-san if I could go back again later and she agreed. I was happy because people were finally letting me join something. I told Hitomiko-san not to tell anyone because I thought that if you all knew then you'd start teasing me or want to join too and I'd be left out again or it wouldn't be fun anymore."

I put my hand over my mouth and looked away. _'Fuck,'_ I thought, _'so it's basically my fault he hasn't told anyone. I guess it's also my fault he makes himself out to be such a fucking pansy all the time. Shit.'_

It was quiet for a while before I mumbled, "Sorry." Rei-ah- _Ryuuji's_ head popped up and stared at me in shock. "I guess…it's kind of my fault, huh?" I could feel my face heat up as I turned away. "I wasn't…the _nicest_ person to you…still aren't, actually."

"No, it's-"

"I was a fucking bastard to you," I nearly yelled. "I know that. I know I'm a jerk and an ass at times, but that's just how I am. I just…I'm sorry, alright? You saved my ass back there then came back and made me out to be a hero when I was a fucking coward. All I did was sit and _watch_ as that guy nearly stabbed you. I couldn't move! You were awesome the way you kicked their asses and sent them packing. Then you help me and cover for me so I didn't look like a pansy in front of the others even if it meant taking on that part for yourself.

"I'm just a dick and you're…you're…crying. Why the fuck are you crying?!" My face was probably as red as my hair.

Ryuuji smiled and said, "I'm just really happy." I was stunned. What the hell did I do or say to make him happy? "You complimented me," He said, rubbing his eyes, "You never compliment anyone. It's the first time you said something nice about me."

I thought back. _'I've said nice things to him before…haven't I?'_ The more I thought back, the more I saw how much of a dick I'd been to him. God, how had he put up with me? Had I been in his place, I'd have punched myself.

"And you know," I looked up as he started talking again, "Most people freeze up when they're faced with a knife or sharp object."

"You didn't," I grumbled.

"That's because I've faced them before," He said and I gaped at him. "We practice with wooden weapons at the dojo when you advance far enough to help train you to overcome your body's natural reaction to tense up or freeze when faced with a dangerous weapon." He grimaced and said, "I've also stopped a few muggings before where the attacker had a knife or gun to the victim."

"Fuck," I said, "Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

"I couldn't just do nothing!" Ryuuji protested. "We're taught at the dojo to protect ourselves and others around us. Everyone there is taught over and over to only use our knowledge to protect, never to harm. So when I saw them being threatened I couldn't just sit back and do nothing."

I raised an eyebrow. "Does Hitomiko-san know?" Ryuuji flushed and looked down. I took that as a no. "Tell ya what," I said, "I won't tell Hitomiko-san about you nearly killing yourself to protect strangers if you teach me what you did the other night."

"You want me to teach you?" He asked and I nodded. "Well, I _can_ , but only if you join the dojo." When I raised an eyebrow he quickly explained, "What I did was a high level technique, and if you want to learn it you have to start from the basics or you may wind up hurting yourself or the one you're trying to protect on accident."

I sighed but nodded. "Fine," I said, "But if you tell anyone, I'll kill you." He nodded quickly. "Good. So when's the first practice?"

"Tomorrow at ten," He told me. I nodded and left the room, silently vowing to try and be a little nicer and less of a dick to Ryuuji from now on. He honestly didn't deserve it.

I grumbled under my breath as I followed Ryuuji. That fucking bastard Gazelle wouldn't leave me alone when I said I had something to do. I'd finally ditched him by locking myself in my room and climbing out the window.

Our walk was silent but didn't take very long. He led me into a normal looking building that didn't really stand out and into the back. "You can borrow one of the extra uniforms," He told me, handing me a white bundle. "You can leave your things back here with mine so nobody takes them on accident." I nodded, kicked off my shoes and shed my jacket. The bundle he gave me consisted of pants, a weird short sleeved jacket thing and a white cloth belt.

The pants were easy enough, but I was lost after I put on the jacket thing. I looked to Ryuuji who had finished changing and was waiting on me. Before I could say anything, he came over and quickly put one end of the jacket over the other and took the belt, tying it around my waist to keep it closed.

"I'll teach you later," He said with a smile, "But we're going to be late if we don't hurry." He grabbed my wrist and dragged to an open space with mats on the ground and others in the same thing as me talking and laughing with each other.

As I looked around, I noticed that everyone had a different color belt on. Some were white like me, while others were yellow, green, orange or others. I looked at Ryuuji who had gone over to a few older men and noticed they all had black belts. I had no idea what they meant, but I figured I'd find out soon.

I stood awkwardly near the entrance for a while before one of the older men with a black belt yelled for everyone to line up. I was about to go to the back when Ryuuji waved for me to come forward. I ignored the stares as I went and stood up next to him.

"This is Nagumo Haruya," Ryuuji said when everyone was quiet, "He's going to be joining us starting today!" I bowed when Ryuuji looked at me and mumbled out a greeting. Ryuuji pointed to a spot in the front and I went and stood there.

The old guy from before shouted something and all the other students responded with a yell and sat on the ground. I quickly mimicked the people next to me. The old guy went on to say a bunch of random crap about using what we were taught to help and keep our minds and bodies strong or something like that. I stared forward and tuned him out.

When his little speech was over, he said, "Begin your stretches." Everyone paired up and started while I looked around. Everyone seemed to already have a partner.

"You can be my partner for today," Ryuuji said as he came over to me. "We'll find you a partner later." I nodded and mumbled out a thanks.

I sat down and mimicked what he was doing the best I could. I realized for the first time how inflexible I really was. "You'll get better," Ryuuji assured me, "You're body's just not used to bending like that yet."

"Get in your groups!" The old guy yelled before I could reply. I looked blankly at Ryuuji.

"Everyone separates into groups based on their rank," He explained. When I still didn't understand, he fingered his belt, "The color of your belt represents your rank." I nodded and looked around for the others who had a white belt. "This way," Ryuuji said, dragging me over to a group of others.

I shifted awkwardly as the others stared at me. Most of them were kids, but there were a few older than I was. Ryuuji clapped his hands and we all looked at him. "Let's get started!" He said with a smile. _'The hell?'_ I thought.

"Let's see your punching stances," Ryuuji continued and the others lined up and spread their feet apart, bent their knees a bit and put their hands to their hips in fists with a yell. I didn't know what was happening, but I did my best to copy the others. Ryuuji went down the line and corrected any mistakes he found.

"Keep your knees bent," Ryuuji said to the first boy, bending his knees to demonstrate, "And make sure your weight is on both legs and not just one." When the boy fixed his stance, Ryuuji moved on. "Keep your back straight," He told the next one.

"Your toes should be pointed forward," He told another, "And your feet should be shoulder length apart." He kept going until he got to me. I'd been correcting my stance as he'd gone down the line. "Widen your feet a little," He told me, watching as I did so. "Keep your hands up a little more and make sure your back is straight." Once I was done, he stepped back and looked at us all with a smile. "Very good, now show me a punch."

I watched as the others threw their right arm forward with a yell and I copied them, without the yell. Once again, he went forward and corrected everyone's forms. When he was done, he demonstrated a punch and said, "Keep your arm straight and twist your torso a bit when you punch to get more power out of it. Your fingers should be pointed down at the end of your punch, when means you twist your wrist as you punch." He slowly went through the punch, showing how he twisted his torso and how his wrist twisted as he punched.

"Now show me another punch, this time with your left." This time I punched at the same time as the others and my eyes widened a little when I felt how different it was than my first one. "Did you feel the difference?" My head snapped to him, but Ryuuji was talking to all of us. I found myself nodding a little bit. He went down the line and made sure everyone's arm was straight and pointing forward.

When he was satisfied with everyone's form, he got into his own punching stance facing us. "We're going to practice your punching. Follow me." He punched with his right arm and let out a short, sharp yell. We all copied him.

I don't know how many punches we did, but when we finally stopped my arms felt like lead. "Take a short break," Ryuuji told us, "We'll go onto blocking next." I watched as everyone went to either grab their water bottles or headed to the water fountain out in the hall. Ryuuji came over to me and asked, "Are you having fun?"

Instead of answering his question I asked one of my own. "Why the hell are you teaching us?"

Ryuuji tilted his head in confusion and said, "I'm one of the teachers here." At my disbelieving look he sighed and explained, "I'm a certified teacher just like the rest of the black belts here." He gestured around and I watched as the other black belts continued teaching the other groups. "We teach the lower belts and then have our own practice afterwards." Before I could say anything he said, "You should get a drink before we start again. It'll be bad if you get dehydrated."

I sighed and went to the water fountain for a quick drink. "Nagumo-kun, right?" I turned and found one of the older students come over to me. He was taller than I was with shaggy brown hair and brown eyes. If I had to guess I'd say he was about two years older than me. I nodded to his question and wiped the water from around my mouth. "I'm Nishita Sora, nice to meet you."

I nodded to him and raised an eyebrow. "Nice to meet you."

"So," He said casually, draping an arm around my shoulder. I shrugged it off and glared at him. He held up his hands and smiled. "How do you know Midorikawa-sensei?" He asked.

"We're at the same orphanage," I said with a shrug.

He nodded and asked, "How come you suddenly decided to join?" I looked away and muttered that he'd saved me. "What?" Nishita asked.

"How about you?" I shot back.

"Me?" He asked, raising his eyebrows, "My girlfriend was almost mugged and raped while I was held at gunpoint. Midorikawa-sensei stepped in and stopped them. I couldn't stand not being able to do anything, so I joined as a way to protect her from anything like that. I'd never seen her so scared before and I never want to see her like that again."

I looked away and asked, "How many people are here because of Re-Ryuuji?"

Nishita looked at me in surprise and then understanding. "Well," He said, "Technically, nobody's here _because_ of Midorikawa-sensei. I'm here so I can both defend myself and protect my girlfriend. Of course, I probably would be dead if it weren't for him, but even if I hadn't died from that, I'd probably have still wound up here. Midorikawa-sensei just helped us and showed me how strong I could be, but I'm not here because of him."

I didn't have a chance to answer as Ryuuji called us back into our line. As I went through learning how to block, I thought about what Nishita had said. While Ryuuji did save me, I didn't think about learning how to do what he did until I actually talked with him.

I was brought out of my thoughts when Ryuuji poked me in the head. "You're not paying attention," He said. I looked around and flushed when I found I was the only one still practicing the blocks. The others were standing in a loose circle around us. I quickly went to the open space between Nishita and one of the younger boys.

"Alright," Ryuuji said, looking around at us. "I want you to get into pairs. One of you will practice punching while the other practices blocking. You'll switch on my signal." I was about to look around for a partner when Nishita put an arm around my neck.

"Got my partner sensei!" He called with a grin. I glared at him and shoved his arm off me. Ryuuji simply smiled at us and made sure everyone else was paired up. I faced Nishita and got into the punching stance. He did the same and I threw a punch in his direction. He was a little slow with his block and I caught his arm, making him wince a little. I smirked but frowned when something hit my head.

I turned and glared at Ryuuji who was frowning at me. "This is _practice_ ," he said, "so you're supposed to go _slowly_ to practice your forms. Stand a little further back," He told Nishita who nodded and did as told. "The goal is not to injure each other, but to make sure you have the forms correct and know how to use them. Now do it again, but slowly." I sighed and threw a slow punch at Nishita who brought up a block.

I turned to Ryuuji who nodded. "That's better," He said. "Nishita-san, you need to keep your arm up higher when you block." He moved the older teens arm up a few inches. "Nagumo-kun," He turned to me, "Don't forget to twist as you punch." He demonstrated once more and had us do it again. "Better, now do it again with your other hand." He watched as we went through it a few more times before moving onto the other pairs.

After a while, he called for us to switch and I took my turn blocking Nishita's punches. We didn't talk as we practiced, but instead fell into a rhythm of punching and blocking. When Ryuuji felt that everyone had it down, we took another break before going on to high blocks and then low blocks. Once we'd finished with low blocks, Ryuuji told us that practice was over for the day.

I was surprised, since it didn't feel like that long. "So what'd you think?" Nishita asked me as he started gathering his things.

"It was fine," I said with a shrug. He laughed and clapped my on the back.

"I'll see you next time then!" He called as he left. I glared at him and resisted the urge to flip him off, since there were kids around.

"I'm glad you and Nishita-san are getting along," Ryuuji said as he came up behind me. I rolled my eyes but didn't say anything. "You can go now, if you want. I still have my own practice to do so I'll be home later."

I turned and looked at him but didn't make a move to leave. I saw some of the others sit along the wall and start talking. Ryuuji followed my gaze and said, "They're going to stay and watch. You're welcome to stay if you want, but it'll probably be a few hours until we're done."

"I'll stay," I muttered, going to sit along the wall. I sat along the same wall as the others, but kept a space between us so I wouldn't have to listen to them or talk with them. I watched as more people entered, all with a black belt tied around their waist. Most of them were adults, but a few looked to be in high school or university. Ryuuji was the only middle scholar.

I watched them go through their own stretching before warming up with some pushups, sit-ups and some jogging across the room. It was a little boring, but I sat up a little when they all paired off. Ryuuji was with one of the newcomers who looked to be around twenty years old or so. He was average height and built well with black hair cut short and dark brown eyes.

Ryuuji started a series of punches and kicks while his partner blocked. Neither seemed to want to hurt the other as they continued and eventually swapped. I slumped a bit as I watched this go on for about half an hour.

Just when I was thinking about leaving, they all stopped and bowed to their partners before sitting along the opposite wall as the rest of us. Two of them who I didn't know stood up and walked to the center of the room. They bowed to each other and got into their stances. My eyes widened when I saw one of them charge at the other with a yell and throw a fake punch before swinging around and aiming a kick to his opponents ribs. It was blocked and the opponent kicked toward the attackers chin, making him bend backwards into a bridge and send a kick of his own that missed.

It almost seemed like the two were dancing as they continued on with their spar. Some punches and kicks landed, but none were meant to seriously hurt the other and would probably only bruise. When they finished they bowed to each other and sat back along the wall, panting and sweating.

Another pair stood up and began their own spar. I watched as each pair took their turn to spar with wide eyes and a slightly open mouth. When it was Ryuuji's turn, he glanced at me and put his hand under his chin and pushed up slightly before turning his attention to his opponent and bowing. I put my hand to my chin and flushed when I realized I'd had my mouth open the entire time. I quickly shut it and watched as Ryuuji and his opponent started circling each other slowly.

My mouth probably dropped open again when they actually started sparing. It was faster than any of the others and I could barely follow what was happening. Part way in, Ryuuji flipped over his opponent and spun on one foot once he touched the ground while using his other to aim a kick up towards his opponents head. The other man ducked and rolled under the kick, jumping up and sending a flurry of punches back at Ryuuji who crouched and swiped his feet to try and knock his opponent off balance.

The man jumped and did his own flip over Ryuuji before sending his own spinning kick that Ryuuji blocked and grabbed, using the man's momentum to actually throw him across the mats. The man had to roll out of the way as Ryuuji ran and jumped, aiming a punch at the man's face but hitting the mat instead.

I don't know what happened next, but Ryuuji suddenly had his opponent on the ground and was twisting his arm in a painful looking way until the man used his free hand to hit the mat. Ryuuji let go and he stood up. The two bowed to each other and went to sit back along the wall.

The remaining pairs sparred but I didn't find them as cool as Ryuuji's had been. Once they had all sparred, they all stretched out again and then started gathering their things to leave, some staying and talking with each other. Ryuuji's partner went over to said greenette and asked something I couldn't hear. Ryuuji nodded and began demonstrating a move he'd done slowly, catching the attention of the others.

I watched as they all went over to see what he was doing and then started practicing it on their own, occasionally asking for help to make sure they were doing it right.

They all stayed and practiced moves others had done during their spars for about an hour before Ryuuji split from them while calling out his goodbyes. He held out a hand to me which I took and helped me up before asking, "Ready to go?" I nodded, still not quite over the fact that I had just seen some amazing ass-kicking from the younger boy.

We went back and changed into our regular clothes before heading out. Ryuuji had told me that I could keep the uniform until I got my own and had put it in his bag along with his own. "I'll teach you how to tie the belt at some other point. It's not that hard once you know how to do it. The next practice is after school on Monday if you want to come. You don't have to come to every practice, but it generally helps you improve faster if you do. It's also good to practice on your own so you don't forget anything."

"Where do you practice?" I asked after a few moments of silence.

"Me?" He asked and I nodded. "I generally go to the park in the evenings since there aren't many people, but if it's cold or there are a lot of people, then I go to the dojo." At my questioning look he said, "All the teachers have a key so they can practice there." He was quiet for a while before he said quietly, "You can join me if you want." When I looked at him he flushed and said, "That way I can make sure you're doing it right and you don't have to worry about finding somewhere else to practice."

I nodded. "Alright," I said, looking at him out of the corner of my eye, "So when are practices?"

He smiled and said, "Main practices are held from late afternoon to evening Monday, Wednesday and Friday and in the mornings on Saturday. I usually practice Tuesday and Thursday as well, and Sunday is used to rest."

I thought about it and nodded. "Since it's getting colder we're not playing soccer so I should be able to make it." Ryuuji smiled and started talking about how the belts worked, how you moved up and what the colors meant. "Ryuuji," I said, stopping his ramblings and making him look to me, "Do you like soccer?"

Ryuuji blinked and looked down. I'd thought so. "Why did you participate then? You always played when Gran asked you and even got hurt." I narrowed my eyes when Ryuuji looked guilty. "Ryuuji…don't you dare tell me that you got hurt on purpose just so you didn't have to play."

"I didn't!" Ryuuji said. "I just…pretended to…" He trailed off, looking away from me. "But it wasn't so I didn't have to play!" He said quickly, whirling to face me.

"Then why?" I asked, stopping and crossing my arms.

He flushed and looked at the ground. "I had a tournament…" he mumbled just loud enough for me to hear. I opened my mouth but he cut me off as he lifted his head and exclaimed, "It was the finals! I couldn't just skip it! I'd worked hard to get there!"

I stared at him and he flushed a darker red, looking down. I sighed and started walking again. "Come on," I called, glancing back at him, "I'm hungry and dinner's probably almost ready." I didn't stop or turn around, but I heard him run to catch up and smirked when I saw him smiling happily. "So did you at least win?" I asked when we were near Sun Garden.

"First place," He whispered back happily before he skipped inside. I shook my head and snorted, casually walking inside. I went to the kitchen, ignoring Gazelle who was glaring at me and grabbed a bag of chips and a soda before heading upstairs. "God damn it!" I yelled when I slammed into my door. I frowned and tried the knob. Right, I'd locked it and snuck out the window to avoid Gazelle. With a sigh I headed back downstairs. I'd deal with it tomorrow.

When Monday rolled around, I told Ryuuji I'd meet up with him at the dojo after school. I'm glad I did, since I had trouble getting away from everyone. I cursed as I sprinted to the dojo. I was going to be late at this point!

When I finally got there, I ran to the back where Ryuuji had taken my before and found he'd placed my uniform out for me. I shed my school uniform, shoes and socks and put on the white uniform, cursing again when I realized I didn't know how to tie the belt. "Screw it," I muttered and just tied it in a knot before rushing out to the training room. I was lucky since right as I entered the old man from before called everyone to line up.

Ryuuji giggled when he saw me and I glared at him before facing the front again. The geezer went through the same crap he did last time before he told us to split up and stretch. I was about to turn to Ryuuji when I was pulled back by an arm around my neck. I growled and pushed Nishita's arm off while turning to glare at him.

He just smiled and started laughing when he took in my appearance. "Here," I turned and found Ryuuji next to me, reaching for my belt. He swiftly untied it and put in on correctly. "I'll teach you tomorrow," He said with a smile and nodded to Nishita before went to stand with the other black belts again. With a sigh, I got started with the stretching, glaring at Nishita all the while.

When we split up into our groups, Ryuuji had us practice punching and the different blocks again for a while to make sure we remembered the correct form before he told us to go into a kicking stance. We essentially did the same thing we'd done Saturday, only with kicks. When I brought it up to Nishita, he laughed.

"Of course," He told we as we took our second break, "We do this anytime we get someone new so that they aren't lost. Besides, when you're a white belt all you really learn and go through are the basic stances, punches and kicks."

"Why?" I asked. I'd been hoping to learn a lot of the cool moves I'd seen Ryuuji and the others use.

"It's just how it is," Nishita shrugged. I frowned but didn't get to say anything as we were called back to continue. I guess I'd just ask Ryuuji later. After we finished, I pulled Ryuuji aside before he could go to the other black belts.

When I asked him, he looked thoughtful before saying, "I could tell you…but I think I'll wait and show you first."

"Show me?" I asked. He nodded and called Nishita over.

"I want you both to stay and watch. You can leave after the first match." I looked at Nishita who shrugged and brought his things over and sat along the wall with me. Ryuuji looked at us before he went and began stretching with the others.

When it was time for the sparring to start, Ryuuji stood in the middle with the same man he'd faced off with Saturday. They bowed and I stared as Ryuuji settled into the punching position we'd been learning. His opponent seemed wary because of this and waited for a while. When Ryuuji didn't move, he ran forward and threw a punch. "Block," Ryuuji said, bring his arm up in the first block we'd learned.

His opponent kicked up and Ryuuji said, "Low block," While doing just that. He continued calling out the basic blocks they'd use while using them himself as he defended himself from his opponent. Finally, the other man tried a roundhouse kick which Ryuuji blocked and at the same time he sent his first punch which connected with his opponents stomach. "Block and punch," he said, followed by "kick" as he sent the snap kick we'd been learning and caught the mans' jaw as he began doubling over from the pain of the punch, causing his head to snap back. Ryuuji returned to the punching position before standing up and bowing, his opponent out cold on the floor. He bowed to his fallen opponent before some of the others came and helped him over to a corner.

Ryuuji motioned for me and Nishita to follow him and we did, both wide eyed and slack jawed at how he'd knocked the other man out with two hits. He led us to the back while the other black belts continued on with their sparring matches.

"To answer your question," Ryuuji said as he looked at me, "That is why you're only learning the basics. While all the flipping around and complex moves look cool, you don't need them to protect yourself or others. Sometimes they become a hindrance to you instead. The basics are the most important part of martial arts; without them, you'll just flounder around and not do any damage.

"What you are learning now will be built upon later, but if you don't have a sound knowledge of the forms, you'll more than likely hurt yourself or others. We drill these forms into you so your body will react instantly when in a fight. Once you're able to do these perfectly without thinking about it, you'll advance and begin learning more complex moves."

"You're telling me I can knock someone out with just a punch like you just did?" I asked.

"No," Ryuuji said and both Nishita and I frowned. "While you'll probably land a hit, it won't be enough to knock them out or even potentially injure them. As you continue training, it will be possible, but the reason we begin with formations and not strength is so that you do not injure your partner and so that when your strength does build, you will not give a sloppy punch that wouldn't do any damage."

"So when do we start building our strength?" Nishita asked.

"When you advance to the next belt," Ryuuji explained. "White belts learn formations, while white belts with yellow work on gaining strength. Yellow belts work on combining the two while also training speed, reflexes and added a few new formations to learn. Many people progress to yellow within two months of training or less. After that it will take longer and be harder to obtain the next rank. For each new belt you acquire, you can expect harsher training and a longer wait for the next one. The grading also gets stricter so it becomes more difficult to pass. Some take the tests for higher belts multiple times before finally getting it."

He was quiet as he let us digest this new information before he asked, "Do you both understand the importance of what you're learning?"

Nishita bowed and yes, "Hai, Midorikawa-sensei. I'm sorry for ever having doubted what you were teaching me."

"I guess," I said when he looked at me. He seemed to realize that was all I was going to say and he let out a sigh but smiled at us both.

"So long as you understand," He said. "You may go if you wish." Nishita bowed again and left the room to go and collect his things. Ryuuji and I began changing back into our school uniforms, his for middle school and mine for high school.

"It's not like I was doubting you or anything," I muttered as we were leaving the building.

"I know," Ryuuji said as he looked up at the sky, "But Nishita-san hasn't been as enthusiastic lately since we were only repeating what he already knew. You asking the question was a good chance for me to show him why it was so important. I wanted to show you as well so that way you wouldn't end up like him and get bored and not want to practice anymore." I was quiet as I realized that he'd been worried about me.

' _Fuck,'_ I thought, _'now I really feel like a jackass with how I treated him before. I always thought he hated me after the whole alien thing seeing as how I treated him and the others like shit.'_ I glanced at Ryuuji from the corner of my eye. _'Guess I don't know him as well as I thought.'_

When we got back to Sun Garden, Ryuuji skipped inside and yelled out that he was home. I shuffled in and kicked off my shoes before heading upstairs. I avoided everyone and locked myself in my room. I had a lot to think about now.

* * *

 **So this is just a random thing I wrote a while ago. I don't remember what I was planning on doing with it, and this seemed like a good place to stop, so I ended it here. Let me know what you thought.**


	2. Chapter 2

"So," I glanced up at Nishita as the elder teen draped himself over my shoulder. "You going to enter the tournament that's coming up?"

I pushed him off and shrugged. "Maybe. Soccer is starting back up since the weathers warming up, so I might not have the time."

"I bet you're just scared that I'll beat you like I did last time."

"That wasn't even a real tournament! And we _both_ know I'd kick your ass if I entered."

"Not for long if you run back to soccer."

"Please, if Ryuuji managed to balance both soccer and this, so will I."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." I turned and scowled at our teacher. Ryuuji taught the white belts, and ever since Nishita and I had moved up in rank, we'd also changed teachers. Hijari-sensei was alright, as far as teachers went, but a real stickler for the details. "Ryuuji-kun had gotten his black belt by the time the serious matches and training for soccer started up. He was able to train on his own without coming here.

" _You_ , however, are only a green belt."

"We're going to advance to purple soon though!" Nishita said happily.

Hijari-sensei shook his head. "That may be so, but it's at the purple and blue belts that things get hard. Many students have quit at that stage, or taken close to a year to advance."

"Why is that?"

"When you advance to purple, and then blue, you may start to feel you are becoming better – which you are. However many let that arrogance go to their heads, and believe they're ready to advance sooner than they are. This causes them to lose patience with what they learn and throws off their forms. Purple and blue belts are right between the white and black belts. They help mark the transition from beginner to advanced. Some believe they are the hardest belts to overcome."

"So that means Nagumo won't be able to advance if he tries to do both soccer and martial arts." I growled at taller teen.

"Not necessarily," Hijari-sensei smiled, amused. "It simply means he'll have to work harder, and it may take him longer to advance than those who commit their entire time to martial arts."

I folded my arms over my chest. "I'm not quitting soccer."

Hijari-sensei raised an eyebrow. "I'm not asking you to. I'm simply stating the facts as they are."

"Nagumo!" We were interrupted by Ryuuji, who bounded over happily. "The school's soccer tryouts are next week. Do you think you'll be able to make practice then?"

"That depends on when they end, but I'll try."

Ryuuji's green ponytail swished back and forth as he shook his head. "Don't force yourself. If you're tired after tryouts, then coming to practice won't be a good idea." I frowned but nodded. Ryuuji only ever had me stop or skip practice if I was going to get hurt or accidently hurt someone else. He was better at seeing my limits then I was.

His eyes lit up again as he asked, "Are you going to participate in the tournament this weekend? It's before tryouts, and I think you could do really well! You've gotten so much better since you joined!"

I glared suspiciously at him and the grinning Nishita. "Is this some ploy to get me to participate? Even if I win the tournament, I'm not going to quit soccer."

Ryuuji blinked and tilted his head like a confused puppy. "Why would you quit soccer? You love it."

I stared at him for a few moments before turning to the other two and gesturing towards the green haired teen. "How does one argue with _that_?"

"You don't," Hijari-sensei laughed.

"It's Midorikawa-sensei's finishing move," Nishita said, slinging an arm around the highly confused teen. The youngest huffed and folded his arms.

I sighed and shrugged. "I suppose it won't hurt to give it a shot. It'll be my first _actual_ tournament." I sent a look to the brown haired teen who grinned widely.

Ryuuji grinned and clapped his hands. "I'll go register you after practice today then!"

"Are you going to compete as well?"

"My tournament's not until next weekend, but I'm going to participate as a judge at this tournament."

"They split up the black belts from the lower belts for tournaments?"

"Not all the time. This is just a larger tournament, so there are more participants. It'd be too difficult to have everybody go the same weekend, so they split it up. Green belts should start sometime late afternoon on Saturday. There are always a lot of beginners at these tournaments, so they should take all of the morning. There's also a break for lunch, so the higher belts won't go until either later in the evening or the next day."

"Not to mention," Hijari-sensei cut in, "That black belts tend to help judge the lower belts matches so more can be done at once. To keep the matches fair for the black belts, only those either not participating in the tournament or specialized referees are able to judge, so less matches take place at once."

"It's more common for really big tournaments to be held over holidays or breaks, so more people can participate, but it's not unheard of for them to be split up between weekends like this."

I folded my arms in thought. "How is it that we never found out about you doing this?" Ryuuji furrowed his brows in confusion. "I mean, I've been doing this for a few months, and _Gazelle_ is already on my back all the time about where I disappear to. Not to mention the others. You've been doing this for, what, _years_ now? How is it that we never noticed?"

The green haired teen shrugged his shoulders uncomfortably. "It was easy for me to kind of fade into the background. You all were always so hyped up about soccer, and that was all anyone ever really did or talked about. All I had to say was I was going to the library, or to the park, or even to a friends, and everyone would lose interest. It's like, if it wasn't about soccer, nobody cared."

I rubbed the back of my neck. "I guess we were all a little crazy about it, weren't we?" I gazed upwards as I felt heat in my cheeks. "We didn't mean to…ya know…belittle you or anything. Well, the others didn't I'm sure. I probably did because I was an ass, but still. Sorry."

" _Awwww_!" I growled and shoved Nishita away, my face growing even hotter. "How _sweet_ Nagumo-chan!"

"Don't call me that Damnit!"

Arms wrapped around my waist before I could punch the conceded jerk who was laughing his ass off. "For what it's worth," Ryuuji whispered, "I don't think you were as much of a jerk as you make yourself out to have been." He grinned up at me. "Thank you though."

I hesitantly patted his head a few times before pushing him away and clearing my throat. "Ya, well, that's what older brothers are for. We may be jerks and assholes at times, but that doesn't mean we don't care."

The smile Ryuuji gave me then was happier and brighter than I'd ever seen him smile before. I didn't feel like I deserved it, but it was nice. "I didn't know you were so cheesy Nagumo-chan!"

"Damnit!" I turned and started chasing the brown haired bastard. "Don't call me that!" I could feel the heat in my face as Ryuuji and Hijari-sensei laughed behind us.

* * *

Double checking I had everything I need, I zipped my bag closed and slipped out of my room. Ryuuji had already left, since he was helping judge from the beginning of the tournament, but he'd told me I didn't have to be there until lunch.

It took about an hour to get to the venue by train, and I was running early. I wanted to have enough time to check out some of the earlier matches and warm up. Jamming my shoes on, I sighed when Gazelle spoke up behind me.

"Where're you headed?"

"Out."

"Out where?"

I turned and frowned at him. " _Out_. Don't you have someone else to bother?"

The bastard smirked and crossed his arms as he leaned against the wall. "Nobody else has been sneaking out almost every day these past few months. So Burn, where have you been sneaking off to?"

"One, I haven't been sneaking off anywhere. Two, where I go and what I do are none of your business. Three, you're going to make me late, so I'm leaving now."

"Meeting Ryuuji?"

Pausing, I narrowed my eyes. "What makes you think I'm going to meet Ryuuji?"

Gazelle rolled his eyes. "You either leave with him, or you come back with him. Obviously whatever secret you're hiding includes him." He smiled mockingly. "What's the matter Burn? Are you _that_ desperate for friends?"

I growled. "Lay off _Gazelle_. Ryuuji doesn't deserve your shit."

He looked surprised before pushing off the wall and stepping closer. "What's going on with you? A few months ago you wouldn't have cared if I said that, let alone call him by his _name_."

"Yeah, well a few months ago I learned what a fucking _dick_ I'd been. He didn't – _doesn't_ – deserve it." I turned and put my hand on the doorknob. Scowling at nothing, I muttered, "Neither did you or the others. Sorry."

I didn't wait to hear his reply and instead bolted out the door, not stopping until I'd reached the train station. Finding the correct one, I hurried and boarded before it left. I'm pretty sure my face was red. I don't know _what_ came over me back there. "He's never going to let me forget that. I just _know_ it."

Sighing heavily, I tried to get Gazelle out of my mind so I could concentrate on the tournament. Ryuuji had said it was a knockout style. So if I lost once, that was it. At least I would be ranked with other green belts in my age range. Having to fight an adult or a little kid wouldn't have been fair. Unfortunately, Nishita was placed in the age range above me, so I wouldn't get a chance to whip his ass in the tournament.

I was actually pretty curious how many people would be there. Ryuuji had said it was a bigger tournament, so that probably meant quite a few people would attend, but how many would actually _participate_ was beyond me. I suppose I'd just have to wait and find out when I got there.

* * *

I'm pretty sure my jaw dropped again. This place was _huge_. Like, professional soccer stadium huge. We were competing _here_?

"You're gaping." Flushing red, I glared at Nishita. The bastard had probably waited just for this moment. Chuckling, he jabbed a thumb over his shoulder. "Come on, we need to get you checked in. Have you eaten yet?"

"I can check in just fine on my own! And I brought my lunch."

"But what if you get lost in this big crowd?" He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and forcibly led me to the table where I needed to check in. Thankfully they had separate tables for the different belts, so it didn't take long, and soon I was back to gaping as we actually went inside the tournament hall.

Everywhere you looked there were matches happening. At least half the seats were full, some being participants, others spectators. I caught a glimpse of who I thought was Ryuuji, standing off to the side of one of the matches. When one of the girls landed a kick, his right arm shot out to the side, a white flag in his hand.

Nishita nudged me towards some empty seats. "Midorikawa-sensei should be getting a lunch break soon, if you want to wait."

"Has he been doing this the entire weekend?" I set my bag down in the empty seat next to me as I watched the matches. "You'd think he'd get tired of it."

"You mean you don't think he enjoys watching people try and repeat basic moves and sloppily attempting to hit their opponent over and over for hours on end?" I rolled my eyes at his grin. "Obviously he must be having a _blast_."

Ignoring the older male, I found a fairly empty section to sit and wait for Ryuuji to finish up. Absently watching the matches going on, my mind wandered back to earlier. Had he actually _apologized_ to _Gazelle_? Why the _fuck_ had he apologized to that _bastard_? He apologized to Ryuuji because the green haired teen had never done anything to deserve his anger. Gazelle and the others though, always found a way to piss him off. He shouldn't have to fucking apologize to them. So why _had_ he? He wasn't getting sentimental was he? Maybe he'd hit his head during practice.

"If you think too hard your brain will explode." Frowning, I attempted to elbow the taller teen in the side, but Nishita just laughed and moved away. "What's got you so spaced out today? Scared you're going to lose your first match?"

"Like hell."

I saw Nishita's frown from the corner of my eye but ignored it. I wasn't in the mood for his shit. "Are you sick?" He put a hand on my forehead and I swat it away. "Seriously, what's wrong with you today?"

"That's what I want to know," I muttered to myself. Letting my head fall down between my knees, I let out an irritated sigh. "I don't know. I just…Gazelle was being a dick this morning when I was trying to leave."

"Isn't that normal?"

"Yeah, but…he made a stupid comment about Ryuuji and I told him to knock it off. He blew up at me about it."

"And what? Did you punch him?"

Groaning, I glanced up at the brown haired teen. "I _apologized_ to him." The older teen's jaw dropped and his eyes went wide.

"You _apologized_? _You_? Are you _sure_ you aren't sick?"

"Nagumo's sick?" I looked up at Ryuuji who worriedly leaned forward and pressed our foreheads together. "You don't have a fever. Are you feeling alright?"

Lightly shoving Ryuuji away, I grumbled to myself. I shouldn't have said anything. Maybe I _was_ getting sick. "I'm fine."

Nishita leaned over to Ryuuji and stage whispered, "He said he _apologized_ to Gazelle before he left."

I growled at the older teen as Ryuuji looked surprised before he smiled happily. "That probably made Suzuno really happy."

"Ha? That bastard is never going to let me live it down."

Ryuuji shook his head. "Hitomiko-san told me that when you were younger you and Suzuno were really good friends. Ever since you started training, he's seemed a little lonely." Lonely? Why would that bastard be _lonely_? Shouldn't he be _happy_ that I'm not around as much? I must have looked as confused as I felt, because Ryuuji explained, "Suzuno still considers you a friend."

"How would you know?"

"Because if he didn't, why would he care so much about where you're going?"

"To annoy me?" Ryuuji simply smiled and sat down, pulling out his lunch. Pulling out my own, I thought about what he'd said. I thought we were rivals. Rivals couldn't be friends. Pausing, I glanced towards where Ryuuji and Nishita were happily chatting. No, that wasn't true. Nishita was his rival, and as much as he's a bastard, he's still my friend.

Was that how Gazelle saw him? A rival who was also a friend? Frowning, I shook my head and forced myself to eat. I'd think about him later. For now, I had to focus so I didn't get my ass handed to me in the first round.

* * *

I growled as Nishita shoved his medal in my face _again_. "It's just a fucking _bronze_ idiot."

"Jealous Nagumo-chan?" I quickly flipped my middle finger at him before shoving my hand back into my pocket. I'd rather not get hit for doing or saying something inappropriate in front of children. Again.

"Fourth place is still good for your first tournament," Ryuuji said.

"What did _you_ get in your first tournament?"

"Second place." Seeing my glare, he quickly waved his hands and shook his head. "But there were only two of us in my age group! So really it was last place!"

Nishita laughed and wrapped an arm around Ryuuji's neck. "And what about the one after that?"

Ryuuji flushed and looked down. "…Second place."

"Out of how many?"

"…Fifteen."

Growling, I stomped away from the tournament area. Ryuuji and Nishita followed slightly behind me. It was only once we got to the station that I asked the green haired teen, "Are you going to try out for soccer this year as well?"

Ryuuji hummed slightly before shaking his head. "Soccer is alright, but after the whole Aliea thing, I don't think I want to keep playing competitively."

"Aliea thing?" Nishita asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Don't ask," I told him, "it wasn't a very good time." Glancing sideways at the younger male, I couldn't help but say, "Gran will probably be upset."

"Hiroto is a big boy," Ryuuji answered, much to my surprise, "He'll get over it. Besides, I think he and Osamu already had a feeling that I wasn't having as much fun as them."

"I've been meaning to ask," Nishita cut in, "But what's with these names? Gran? Gazelle?"

I rolled my eyes while Ryuuji gave a vague explanation. "There was a…phase at the orphanage where we all picked what our names would be if we were…aliens. Nagumo still uses those with some of the others that annoy him."

Nishita grinned as he nudged me. "Alien names? Really? What was yours?"

"Like hell I'm telling _you_. As I said before, not our best moment." I could see Ryuuji opening his mouth and slapped my hand over it. "Don't you _dare_ tell him."

"Oh come on Nagumo-chan, I sure it isn't _that_ bad." The grin on his face said otherwise. "Maybe I'll drop by your place and ask around. I'm sure this gazelle person would me _more_ than happy to share."

Damnit. The bastard _would_ too. Grumbling, I reluctantly told him. "Burn."

Nishita blinked a few times before his mouth began twitching. "Burn. _Seriously_? You choose _burn_ as your alien name?"

"Ryuuji was Reize."

"But _yours_ was _burn_! **_Burn_**!" Gritting my teeth as the older teen nearly doubled over laughing, I balled my hands into fists.

Before I could open my mouth to say something it was Ryuuji who lightly smacked Nishita's shoulder. "It really isn't a very good memory for us." Well, I didn't give a shit about it, but then again Ryuuji _had_ had the worst job there. At least I didn't have to destroy schools. Unfortunately because of that there were a lot of people pissed off at the green haired teen.

"I'm sorry Midorikawa-sensei, but… _burn_." I glared at him and he raised his hands with a heavy sigh. " _Fine_. I won't tease you about it… _too_ much."

I growled, but Ryuuji tugged my arm back. "Nagumo, our train is here." The bastard would get off _this_ time. Next time I saw him though…

* * *

 **So here's another part. I don't know if/how I'll continue this, but I figured since I got a good response from the first part, I'd give you a little more. Let me know what you thought!**


	3. Chapter 3

I yawned as we made our way to school. It was Saturday, the first practice of the season now that tryouts were out of the way and everyone had been assigned or decided on a position to play. It was a little odd, not going to the dojo as I had every week for the past few months, but I was excited for the season to start back up.

When the gates of the school came into view, my eyes narrowed when they landed on Nishita. Why the _fuck_ was that bastard here? There was no reason for him to skip class today. "Nagumo-chan!" The bastard called happily.

I felt my cheeks flush as the others laughed. "The _fuck_ do you want? How did you even know this was my school?"

"I have my ways."

"Ryuuji told you, didn't he?" His grin was answer enough. "Why are you here? Shouldn't you be at class?"

Nishita blinked in surprise before sighing heavily and shaking his head. "You forgot."

"Forgot _what_?" I shouldn't have been forgetting anything. Ryuuji had even left for class already.

"Think about it Nagumo-chan. What happened last weekend?" Crossing my arms in annoyance, I glared at the older teen. If he was here to gloat about his medal _again_ I was going to-

" _Shit_." Today was the start of Ryuuji's tournament. How come Ryuuji hadn't _said_ anything before he'd left? Pulling out my phone, I grimaced. We'd have to book it if we wanted to make the start of the matches.

"We're going to have to run if we want to make it on time." I rolled my eyes. That was obvious.

Turning to leave, I paused when a hand gripped my wrist. "What about practice?" Gazelle demanded.

"Tell coach I'll make it up next time!" I shook off his hand. "I promised Ryuuji I'd be there today!" Not looking back, I hurried to catch up to Nishita. I'd promised to make it to his matches today. Not only would it be the first time I'd get to see him in a tournament, I felt I owed it to him to support him. It was only the first soccer practice of the season, so coach shouldn't be too upset at me for missing, but if I missed Ryuuji's matches, I couldn't do anything about it. You can't really make up for missing a tournament.

* * *

"Nagumo! What are you doing here?"

My right eye twitched slightly. Flicking the green haired teen in the forehead, I replied, "I promised I'd be here, didn't I?"

Ryuuji rubbed the spot I'd flicked and frowned in confusion. "But you had soccer practice today. Are you sure it's alright to miss?"

"Is that why you didn't say anything this morning?" I sighed in annoyance and glared at him. "I made a promise to be here, and I'd be an asshole for breaking it over something that can easily be made up for later. Besides, this will be the first tournament I'll get to see you participate in."

I ignored Nishita's gushing over how sweet I was being in the background and flushed at Ryuuji's happy smile. Why the hell did they have to make this so _embarrassing_? Clearing his throat, he crossed his arms. "Since I'm keeping my promise, you'd better take home that gold medal."

Ryuuji grinned and nodded. "I'll do my best!"

* * *

I frowned when all the black belts lined up together. "Don't they separate them by age groups like we had to?"

Nishita shook his head. "From what Hijari-sensei told me, most of the time black belts are split up based on their skill level. So First degrees are put together, then second degrees, and so on. But apparently this tournament just puts all black belts together regardless since they normally don't have an overwhelming number participate. This year is the most that's ever competed at this tournament."

I couldn't help but laugh slightly at seeing Ryuuji sandwiched between two older and much larger men. He was the only one his age in that group, but I had no doubt in my mind that he could win this.

* * *

"Coach is pissed at you for skipping the first practice." I mentally groaned. Of- _fucking_ -course Gazelle had been waiting for him. "What was oh so important that you had to skip?"

"I told you," I bit out, "I made a promise to Ryuuji."

"Ryuuji-this, Ryuuji-that. He's all you ever talk about or hang out with now. What's so special about him?"

Damnit, I did _not_ want to have this conversation. Especially not while Ryuuji was here. "He's right _here_ Gazelle. You don't have to talk about him like he isn't."

"Like you ever _cared_ before." The younger male stood up and stomped closer. "Ever since that night you came home looking like someone's _punching bag_ , you've become secretive and protective of Ryuuji. You're starting to be like _Gran_."

Oh he fucking _didn't_. " _Gran_? You think I'm acting like _Gran_?"

"Nagumo…"

"Stay _out_ of this Ryuuji."

"Just like _that_ ," Gazelle spat, "You used to be the one tormenting him the most, and now you're fucking _defending_ him?"

"So what if I _am_? He doesn't fucking deserve all this shit he gets. Maybe it took a few punches for me to fucking realize it."

"So what, you got to play a hero for once and decided you liked it? Think you're something like a fucking bodyguard because he can't take a hit without breaking down? You're not his fucking babysitter Burn!"

I almost had to laugh at that. Can't take a hit? I'd watched him take multiple today and dish out even more. Ryuuji didn't need a bodyguard, and I was getting really sick of everyone assuming he did. "Ryuuji isn't weak Gazelle! And I'm getting really fucking sick of you and everyone else assuming he is! He can take care of himself!"

"Then why the _fuck_ do you hang around with him? Trying to clear a guilty conscience?"

"Maybe I actually _like_ hanging out with him! Is that so fucking hard for you to believe? Or what? Are you so jealous that I'm hanging out with someone other than you that you have to take it out on them?"

"You're such a _bastard_!" Gazelle's punch seemed almost _slow_ compared to what I'd grown used to and had seen today. I automatically threw up a block and readied a punch of my own, however before it could connect there was a tight grip on my wrist and the next second I was on my back, staring up at the ceiling.

Blinking and attempting to get my breath back, I sat up and found Gazelle sprawled out on the ground next to me. Ryuuji was glaring down at both of us. "Nagumo." Shit. I'd never heard Ryuuji that angry before.

Taking a deep breath I felt my anger begin to fade. "I know. I let him get to me." Damnit. Gazelle knew _exactly_ how to piss me off.

"What the _hell_?" Gazelle was sitting up, rubbing his head and glaring at both me and Ryuuji. "Why the _fuck_ do you have to explain yourself to _him_?" I clenched my jaw and refused to answer. If I let him get to me again there's no telling what I'd do.

"What's going on?" I groaned. Gazelle was doing a great job pissing me off today. The _last_ person I wanted to deal with was Gran. "Ryuuji, are you alright?"

And there it was again. Everyone automatically assumed Ryuuji was the victim and needed to be protected. "He's _fine_ Gran. He's not a fucking child. He can take care of himself."

"If he can take care of himself then why do _you_ keep coming to his rescue?" Damnit. I could deal with one or the other, but both Gazelle and Gran together were _pissing me off_.

"You _have_ been rather protective of him since you saved him that night." Why the _fuck_ did everyone have to keep bringing that up? "Not that I'm complaining. It's a rather nice change from you always picking on him."

"Don't you think I _know_ I was a fucking bastard?" I was getting sick and tired of everyone reminding me about it. "And just because I'm hanging out with him more doesn't mean I'm _protecting_ him."

"Then how come anytime someone says _anything_ about him you rush to his rescue?"

I glared at the white haired male. "All I do is call people out on the _shit_ they believe. Ryuuji isn't weak, and doesn't need protecting."

"Says the one who protected him from those assholes back then."

"Would you fucking _stop_ talking about that! I didn't fucking protect _anyone!_ _Ryuuji_ protected _me_!" There was silence as Gazelle and Gran attempted to digest what I'd said while Ryuuji was shaking his head over in the corner. That's just fucking great. Me and my big fucking mouth.

" _He_ protected _you_?" Gazelle finally repeated. " _Seriously_?"

As much as I knew they'd never let me live it down, I wanted to end this, 'Ryuuji needs protected' bullshit. "I was the one who pissed off those drunken idiots. I was annoyed and talked back and they decided they needed to bash my head into the wall. Ryuuji passed by and got them to leave."

"But Ryuuji said-"

"Ryuuji lied because he's used to everyone thinking he's weak and needs protected." I glared at the red head. "What was the first thing you did when we got back and you saw I was hurt?" I waited but didn't get an answer. "You made sure Ryuuji wasn't hurt. I'm the bastard with a big mouth who gets into fights, so nobody questions it when I come home with a black eye. But since you have this fucking idea that Ryuuji _has_ to be protected, you kept doting on him and making sure he was alright."

I rounded on Gazelle. "As for why I keep hanging around him? Ryuuji could kick my ass five times over and it wouldn't even be a warm up. He's been teaching me so I don't become some other asshole's punching bag when I open my mouth and piss them off. There. That's the big fucking secret. _Happy_?"

I glanced towards Ryuuji only to find that he'd left at some point in the middle of my ranting. "You don't have to tell me the fucking truth if you don't want to." I frowned at the white haired teen who shoved past me. "But don't fucking lie to me."

"I'm glad you're being nicer to Ryuuji," I glared at Gran, "But saying things like this will only get him into more trouble with people who actually believe it."

Tightening my hands into fists hard enough for my nails to almost draw blood, I felt like punching the two. The _still_ didn't fucking believe me. "Tomorrow morning." They paused and glanced back at me. "Come with me tomorrow morning and I'll fucking _prove_ it."

* * *

"Where are we?" I ignored Gazelle and made my way towards the seats Nishita and I had sat in yesterday.

"Nagumo-chan, you made it!"

"For the last fucking time, stop calling me that!"

Nishita ignored me and glanced towards Gazelle and Gran. "Who are you?"

"Gazelle and Gran," I cut in before they could say anything. Glancing at the two I jabbed a thumb at Nishita. "This bastard is Nishita. He's an idiot. Ignore him."

Said bastard waved off my insult and happily continued talking. "Are you two here to watch Midorikawa-sensei?"

I snorted at their confused looks. "Sensei?" Gran asked.

Nishita blinked in surprise and tuned to me with a questioning look. "I tried telling them and they didn't believe me. They still think Ryuuji is weak and needs protected." The older teen stared at me as though trying to figure out if I was joking before he burst out laughing. Ignoring his idiocy, I scanned the mats for Ryuuji and elbowed Gazelle when I spotted him. "There. See? What did I fucking tell you?"

Ryuuji was warming up as he spoke and laughed with some of the other black belts from the dojo. I couldn't _wait_ to see Gran's and Gazelle's faces when they saw him in action. "So he's stretching," Gazelle muttered, "Big fucking whoop."

Rolling my eyes, I ignored him and turned to the still laughing brown haired male on me left. "Shut up already."

Finally reigning in his laughter, Nishita took a few deep breaths. "I'm good. I'm alright." He took another deep breath. "Anyway, are you going to be ready for the test next month? You haven't been coming to many practices since you started soccer again."

I grimaced at the reminder. Since I'd skipped out on the first practice, the coach has been making me stay an extra hour every practice to make up for it. "Ryuuji agreed to work with me when I had time to make sure I'd be ready. Like hell I'm going to let you get ahead of me."

The elder male sighed lightly. "You're so lucky. You get Midorikawa-sensei to help you make up for what you miss while _I_ have to deal with Hijari-sensei. I think he's taking it as a personal insult that you've been missing class and is having _me_ work harder as a result."

"Serves you right."

"But _you're the_ one that always talks back and annoys him. So why is he taking it out on _me_?"

"Because you're probably slacking off."

"Lies! I work twice as hard because I don't have to spend half my energy babysitting _you_." I elbowed the bastard in the side as he laughed but didn't get the chance to respond as the announcer called the participants to line up.

It was rather amusing, seeing Ryuuji's small form next to the bigger, older males that were there. Rather than having multiple matches going on at the same time like they had yesterday, today was going to be one match at a time. The first two fights would determine which two made it to the finals. After that the losing two would battle it out for third place, and finally after that would be the final match. Four fights in total, and Ryuuji would fight in two of them.

"Based on the results from yesterday Midorikawa-sensei will fight in the second round. If he wins, then he'll fight in the finals, but if he loses he'll go onto the next match to try and place third."

"Either way he's already in the top four."

"Ryuuji's going to fight _them_?" I snorted at the worry in Gran's voice. "Will he be alright?"

Nishita grinned and answered before I could open my mouth. "Midorikawa-sensei will be _fine_. The most anyone walks away with are bruises. Besides, this isn't his first time in a tournament like this. You should _see_ all his medals and trophies back at the dojo."

"Why hasn't he ever said anything about this before?"

I frowned. "Would you have believed him?" He didn't believe _me_ when I told them. "None of us fucking noticed anything before. We were so wrapped up in everything soccer we didn't give a shit about anything else. Answer honestly, if he'd said he didn't want to play soccer, would you have said okay and still hung out with him?" Seeing his mouth open, I glared and cut him off. "You were the one who dragged Ryuuji into soccer and you never once noticed that he didn't like it. So don't give me that bullshit that you would have, because you _didn't_."

I turned back to the match just in time to see it end. Next up was Ryuuji. " _This_ is what Ryuuji enjoys," I muttered, just loud enough for the others to hear. "So shut up and watch."

* * *

"Ryuuji!" I raised my hand as he turned towards my voice. He smiled and ran over. "Nice job."

He held up his gold medal proudly. "It was close, but I won!"

"I thought for _sure_ that big guy was going to crush you," Nishita joked, clasping Ryuuji on the shoulder. "Wouldn't have been as exciting, watching you try to win third place."

I grinned as Gran and Gazelle stared at Ryuuji in bewilderment. They _still_ couldn't believe what they'd just seen. It was hilarious. I elbowed Gran in the ribs.

"That was…amazing." Ryuuji smiled at the red head and held out a peace sign.

Gazelle shoved his hands into his pockets and nodded. "Pretty badass."

I grunted in surprise when Ryuuji hugged me. "Nagumo," He said softly, smiling up at me. "Thank you!"

Smirking, I rubbed my hand on his head, messing up his hair and earning a pout. "Yeah, yeah. That what big brothers are for."

* * *

 **So here's the last part of it. I hope it turned out well. Let me know what you thought! I'd originally had something like Gazelle getting hurt and Burn going to get payback but because he throws the first punch he gets suspended from classes and in trouble and all this happens, but I just didn't know how I'd work that in, so I gave up on it.**

 **Thank you to everyone who has read this and left a review!**


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